This is more of a method than a recipe, as you’ll see. We have some variation of this a few nights a week. If you don’t want meat, you can use your favorite substitute - creamy beans are a nice one. Some folks prefer to chop everything ahead of time, which is especially important if you don’t have a lot of experience with cooking. I find it faster to chop as I go, but I’ve done this a lot and have a good sense of how long each part will take and how well-done my family likes each of their vegetables. Try to keep everything about the same size to ensure even cooking. With each veggie addition, cook until they’re close but not quite done.

1) Warm the lipid of your choice in a heavy-bottomed pan. (Butter, olive oil, coconut oil, and bacon fat or lard are all good choices. Personally, we avoid most vegetable oils.)

2) Start with the alliums. Scallions, onions, shallots, leeks, garlic, scapes. Chop fairly finely, and saute over medium heat until softened and starting to color. Garlic should go in after onions have cooked for a while to avoid burning.

3) Add dried herbs and spices (fresh herbs, except for the very sturdy ones like rosemary, come in at the end). Based on the meat and veggies you have, you can go in a lot of directions with flavor using herbs and spices. Spice and seasoning blends like Italian, Garam Masala, or Cajun are nice to keep on hand and an easy way to create variation in your menu. (Teeny Tiny Spice Co. is a local, quality brand with a wide variety of organic blends.)

3) If you have raw meat, add it next and cook until browned and heated through.

4) Then the hard veggies, mostly roots - potatoes, beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, eggplant. These all take the longest to cook. Stir!

5) Add more lipid as necessary to keep from sticking. You can also splash in some stock, water, or wine and cover to speed cooking.

7) Finally, fresh herbs and very tender veggies like fresh corn, peas, spinach, or beet greens. Cook just until wilted or warmed through.

8) Taste for seasoning. Salt or soy sauce or fish sauce will bring out the flavors. Some lemon juice or vinegar can brighten things, a drizzle of good olive oil creates a lucious sensation. If you are serving with pasta, a small ladelful of pasta cooking water can tie everything together.